When Ji Xu'an made the second call, she was already walking out.
Jiang Jiang had not answered her call, so Ji Xu'an called Old Liu again, telling him to hurry to the school and check on her. Then Ji Xu'an tried contacting Jiang Jiang once more. This time, Jiang Jiang finally answered.
"Sister."
Before Ji Xu'an could ask anything, Jiang Jiang took the initiative to explain, "My phone was on silent just now. I didn't hear it."
"Did you need me for something?"
Ji Xu'an let out a breath of relief. She was already seated in the car, just about to personally drive to S University. If she did not see with her own eyes that Jiang Jiang was safe, Ji Xu'an would not be able to put her mind at ease.
"Jiang Jiang." Ji Xu'an focused carefully on the sounds from Jiang Jiang's side. She did not hear anything unusual.
After a brief pause, she asked cautiously, "Is it convenient to do a video call now?"
Jiang Jiang lowered her head and glanced at the woman in front of her. The other woman was leaning weakly against the wall, breathing heavily, her eyes still watching Jiang Jiang with vigilance.
Jiang Jiang gave a slight nod. "Yes."
Very soon, Ji Xu'an's face appeared on the screen. Jiang Jiang aimed the camera at her own face. Behind her were blue skies and white clouds, warm and peaceful.
And in a place Ji Xu'an could not see, Jiang Jiang was still playing with that silver handgun in her hand. The gun was already loaded. It could discharge at any moment.
The woman stared fixedly at Jiang Jiang's right hand, feeling stifled and furious inside.
No one would have imagined that just two minutes earlier, this girl who was obediently calling someone "sister" had held a tree branch against her neck and calmly asked her, "How is this supposed to be used?"
A branch that could easily be snapped in two had felt like a sharp longsword in her hand. The woman had even had a strange intuition that if this girl wanted to, she really could use that branch to slice open her throat.
The woman could not figure it out no matter how she thought about it. In her team, her combat ability could only be ranked mid to lower tier. But even when facing their strongest leader, she could exchange a few moves. It would not be to the point of having no power to fight back at all.
Was this girl in front of her a monster?!
Thinking of that nearly bizarre palm strike, the woman's gaze fell again on Jiang Jiang's hand. It was that slender, soft palm that had sent her flying!
What the hell!
Jiang Jiang paid no attention to her gaze. She was still speaking with Ji Xu'an.
Ji Xu'an asked her whether she had encountered anything strange.
Jiang Jiang glanced at the woman outside the camera frame. Her voice was gentle and soft. "Just now, it seemed like there was someone I didn't recognize following me."
Ji Xu'an's heart instantly leapt into her throat. "Jiang Jiang, go somewhere with more people and stay there. I've already asked Old Liu to find you."
"Sister." Jiang Jiang blinked her almond-shaped eyes. At this moment, her attitude toward Ji Xu'an seemed to have returned to how it was before anything had happened. "What exactly happened?"
Ji Xu'an froze for a second, then lowered her voice and briefly explained about Arkle. At the end, she said worriedly, "This person is ruthless and vicious. He likes to use underhanded methods. And now he's gotten mixed up with Zheng Zhouzhou. I'm afraid he'll make a move against you."
Ji Xu'an's evaluation of Arkle was clearly heard by the woman as well. Jiang Jiang distinctly saw a moment of unnaturalness flash across her expression.
Jiang Jiang also revealed a thoughtful look.
Arkle had appeared this early?
This person, whether in the story before Zheng Zhouzhou's rebirth or after Zheng Zhouzhou's rebirth, had always played the role of the villain.
Before Zheng Zhouzhou's rebirth, Arkle had simply wanted to bring down the Ji family. But in the end, he still failed.
In the plotline after Zheng Zhouzhou's rebirth, Arkle not only wanted the Ji family's property, he also wanted Zheng Zhouzhou. Yet in the end, he still did not succeed.
The first time he failed, it was because of Ji Xu'an. The second time, the plot attributed the credit to Zheng Zhouzhou. In the end, Arkle abandoned his plan under Zheng Zhouzhou's persuasion.
But according to the timeline, this person should only have appeared later. Yet at this moment he had already gotten entangled with Zheng Zhouzhou…
Jiang Jiang had to suspect that perhaps it was once again the "Heavenly Dao" giving Zheng Zhouzhou a helping hand. Because she had been forced by Ji Xu'an into a dead end, and the plot was on the verge of completely collapsing, so the "Heavenly Dao" had provided her with a new way out.
This woman was most likely sent by Arkle.
Jiang Jiang was not particularly surprised by this. Zheng Zhouzhou was, after all, the protagonist. She would not be so easily "killed off." What Jiang Jiang was thinking about at this moment was another matter.
Had Zheng Zhouzhou already told Arkle that she herself was reborn?
Aside from the reason that she was Ji Xu'an's publicly acknowledged fiancée, was Arkle's interest in her also because Zheng Zhouzhou had said something in front of him?
Now that Ji Xu'an had gone to see Zheng Zhouzhou, was there a possibility that Zheng Zhouzhou would tell her about this as well?
After pondering for a moment, Jiang Jiang suddenly asked softly, "Sister, did Grandma say anything to you?"
Ji Xu'an did not expect Jiang Jiang to suddenly bring this up. She was stunned for a moment, then slowly nodded.
"Yes."
On the screen, there was not much visible tension on Ji Xu'an's face. But the hand resting on her leg had already clenched into a fist, a faint layer of sweat seeping into her palm.
Was Jiang Jiang about to tell her her answer?
Jiang Jiang did not speak immediately. She hooked her index finger around the trigger, the muzzle pointed straight at the woman's heart.
Seeing this, the woman first raised a finger to her lips in a silencing gesture, then lifted both hands, indicating that she absolutely would not disturb her.
Just now, she really had wanted to take advantage of Jiang Jiang being focused on the video call to secretly snatch the gun back. She had not expected to be discovered by Jiang Jiang before she could even act.
Only after seeing that she was temporarily obedient did Jiang Jiang fix her gaze on Ji Xu'an. "Sister really won't regret it? If one day you discover that I might not be quite the same as you imagined…"
"No regrets." Ji Xu'an's tone was exceptionally firm. "If you're not the same as I imagined, that only means I don't understand you well enough. That's my problem, not your fault."
Her gaze was serious and solemn. "What I choose is you as a whole person, not some single thing about you. As long as it's you, I won't regret it."
Jiang Jiang looked at her steadily for quite a while before softly exhaling. "But I'm not of legal age yet. I can't get a marriage certificate."
"We can get engaged first." Ji Xu'an spoke very quickly, as though afraid Jiang Jiang would suddenly change her mind. "If you're not at ease, we can sign an agreement first. Once you reach the legal age, we'll immediately register the marriage."
At this moment, Ji Xu'an did not even care that Arkle and Zheng Zhouzhou were still waiting for her at the restaurant. She wished she could see Jiang Jiang the very next second and settle their matter immediately.
Jiang Jiang seemed not to have classes in the first and second periods this afternoon. As Ji Xu'an recalled Jiang Jiang's schedule in her mind, her hand was already on the steering wheel.
Jiang Jiang heard the sound of the vehicle starting. She looked surprised. "Sister, are you coming over now?"
"Yes." Ji Xu'an pressed down on the accelerator, her expression so calm that one could not tell at all how impulsive her action was.
"Shall we go to Grandma's place together later? Let Grandma be our witness." Ji Xu'an's nervousness was almost tangible. Even through the screen, Jiang Jiang could feel her urgency and anticipation.
Jiang Jiang's mood unconsciously brightened as well. A faint blush rose on her cheeks. "Sister, isn't this a bit too rushed? Secretary Zhao is still waiting for you."
"It's fine." Ji Xu'an's face also seemed slightly red, but she pretended to be composed. "Secretary Zhao knows how to handle it. He earns an annual salary in the millions. He can't possibly wait for me to do everything personally."
Jiang Jiang had nothing to say.
After all, Ji Xu'an had been the one to bring this up. She had already tried to persuade her. But Ji Xu'an would not listen. What could she do?
Later, when Ji Xu'an learned the "truth" from Zheng Zhouzhou, even if she had doubts, she would not be able to push all the responsibility onto her, right?
In fact, from the very beginning, Jiang Jiang had been gambling. Gambling that after she revealed her willingness to marry Ji Xu'an, Ji Xu'an would abandon Zheng Zhouzhou and Arkle to come find her.
She had not been certain whether Ji Xu'an would set aside serious matters for her. But fortunately, she had won the bet.
If Arkle had not suddenly appeared and disrupted Jiang Jiang's plan, she would not have been so rushed. Originally, she had planned to tell Ji Xu'an about this tonight.
Jiang Jiang sighed softly. After signing the agreement, even if she would have to confess all the truth to Ji Xu'an in the future, she would at least have some security.
Only, if Ji Xu'an were to find out that from beginning to end she had been calculating against her, she would probably be very angry.
"I understand." Jiang Jiang did not try to persuade Ji Xu'an further. She then asked, "What about little Yuan? Could she also be in danger?"
Jiang Jiang asked very naturally, her words unable to conceal her concern for Ji Heyuan.
Something that Ji Xu'an, as her biological older sister, had not considered—Jiang Jiang had thought of it.
Ji Xu'an was silent for two seconds. "I'll call little Yuan in a moment."
Jiang Jiang nodded naturally. When she pressed her lips together, the two dimples at her cheeks appeared faintly. "I was just overly worried. You're little Yuan's real sister. How could you possibly ignore her?"
Hearing this, Ji Xu'an felt two seconds of guilt. She truly had not thought of Xiao Yuan just now. Perhaps subconsciously she believed Ji Heyuan would be fine.
In comparison, Ji Xu'an was more worried about Jiang Jiang.
The two of them chatted intermittently. Mostly Ji Xu'an spoke. Jiang Jiang was quiet most of the time. The woman leaning against the wall silently listened to their conversation, her gaze toward Jiang Jiang becoming increasingly strange.
It sounded as though Ji Xu'an did not know what kind of ferocious person her fiancée actually was?
No wonder their intelligence had been wrong. Wasn't even Ji Xu'an kept in the dark?
Just as she was thinking about how to make use of this matter, she saw Jiang Jiang hang up the call, casually slip her phone into her pocket, and then walk toward her.
The woman swallowed. "Don't worry. I absolutely won't say anything!"
Jiang Jiang did not speak. While pressing the gun against the woman's head, she brought two fingers together and swiftly tapped several acupoints on the woman's body.
The woman only felt her entire body go numb. Her hands and feet instantly became so weak she could not lift them at all. Unable to support her body, her knees buckled and she slid softly down along the wall.
This time, the look in the woman's eyes when she looked at Jiang Jiang was no longer surprise, but terror.
Fuck!
Is this some kind of evil art?!
Why can't I move??
"Before my fiancée arrives." Jiang Jiang looked down at the woman from above. "Would you be interested in chatting with me for a while?"
The woman struggled to exhale. "What do you want to talk about?"
"Let's talk about how Zheng Zhouzhou met your boss."
"And whether they made some kind of deal between them."
Jiang Jiang's tone was not harsh, yet it made the woman feel as though cold sweat was about to break out on her back.
"I hope you can tell me everything you know, completely and without omission."
—
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